Around the Sun, Once [read: 1-year]

It’s a little over 365 days around the sun because I’m late, as always, but let us wish [Read:Twenty-Something] a very happy birthday!

I started this blog back in Cambridge, wishing something new would walk right into my life this year and realizing that I had to make it happen. It took the direction of my U.K. buddy Sabrina to get this site on its feet. It took me moving right back across the world to refocus my topic and keep on reading, and rereading, all of the Rory Gilmore Challenge works.

Sure, over the course of a year a lot has changed. I’m a year older, and again, arguably wiser. I’ve rolled into my senior year of college in this wonderful city I call home. I’ve started anticipating that post-grad move, to places unknown and people I’ve yet to imagine I’ll meet. With that, I’ll present some of my favorite snapshots of this past year:

Cambridge [read: home]

Since 2005.

August 15, 2015: Edinburgh in its entirety with Fringe Festival, a surprisingly dead Dolly the sheep, the trek up Arthur’s Seat, a tartan scarf I most definitely wore for about 70% of the past year, and a return to Cambridge

August 20, 2015: a farewell to my home, King’s College, with our final Formal Hall, a jump in the fountain, and a classic British bop to round out our night staying up until the sunrise

September 6, 2015: a visit from the very fleeting, never present Alison that involved travels and talks but really moving me back into Boston

September 18, 2015: my first trip to Coney Island, crashing a wedding with some serious French models, before loading on the brunch all weekend long

September 30, 2015: I know I haven’t written about it, but it’s because I’m still at work, but I presented my collection of short stories written over the summer on campus at a symposium [read: fancy meeting]

October 11, 2015: after going apple-picking, Grace and I had an early Halloween in Salem, the land of her ancestry

November 6, 2015: taking a 7-hour trip into NYC to surprise Tiffany for her birthday, head over to NJ to catch up with my family, and come back almost to miss my train back into Boston (scarring Tiffany forever with my near-misses)

November 22, 2015: it may have been cold, but the AIG Irish Festival and hurling match transported me back to the place of my dreams for a brief night

January 23, 2016: ambushing the boys’ cabin in the middle of the night for a snowball fight while winter camping in Sandwich, Massachusetts

February 14, 2016: a better way to spend Valentine’s Day by going back to Harvard to judge the tournament and root (root root!) for the home team

March 5, 2016: back on down to the good ol’ South for a week of service and learning in Selma, Alabama

March 22, 2016: Toni Morrison spoke at Harvard and I got to go with my class and hear her voice in person, speaking the truth, and it was a landmark moment

April 26, 2016: some more time at home with the people who matter

June 11, 2016: Lela visited her true favorite city and finally gave me an excuse to have Stephanie’s brunch, even on a full stomach from Indian food the night before

June 19, 2016: trip #1 to Tanglewood, getting me out of the city and into the mountains for Beach Boys, Berkshires, Becky, and a beautiful summer day

June 25, 2016: I’m thankful for weekend trips to NYC because they’re so easy and frequent now, even if they’re quick, because I got to celebrate Lela’s birthday with her and with the S&TC/French model crew

July 5, 2016: first day of co-op, freeing this reader from an endless cycle of classes on classes on classes

July 23, 2016: Chicago weekend with the #PandaClan, my day one people, more to come on that

July 31, 2016: celebrating Eesha’s birthday just how one should by attending a midnight release party for the new Harry Potter book (9 years? really?) and spending every waking hour together

Which brings us to today. I am in awe of this past year: the person I’ve become, the places I’ve been, the people I’ve loved, the friends I’ve treasured, and the family I’ve built. It’s giving me a lot [read: too many] feelings, but most of all I am proud. I’m proud of the decisions I’ve made to live day by day, push myself to share my voice (however poorly written at first and edited later) with all of you, and where I’m going tomorrow. As we can see, tomorrow really isn’t so far away.

So, with this one year down, look around the site and hopefully you’ll see that I’ve made some changes to reflect how I’ve changed too. There’s new updates on some of the book posts (I’m still late), a whole new page to better find those posts of mine you’ve just been dying to read, and a new theme to accompany your way through my life. Also, you can now just go to readtwentysomething.com because I’m moving on up in this world. I thank you for sharing this journey with me, for sharing life with me, and for reading from the other side. “Hello,” said Adele, said Sneha.

Cheers to a new year, another beginning of sorts, and more ramblings to come! I hope you’ll stick around, because I’m really only getting started.